Exhibitors Upbeat at Hospitality Show

Posted on November 16, 2010 by HFN Staff

NEW YORK-Home-textiles vendors exhibiting at this week's International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show said both traffic and the mood among attendees was upbeat.

Indeed, attendance seemed to be strong at the show, with the aisles at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center full of representatives of hotel and restaurant chains, independent hotels and restaurants, and distributors to these establishments. "It's more upbeat than last year's show," said Jyl Davis, creative manager for Downlite. The attendees "are in a mood to buy, more so than last year."

Sandra DiVito, vice president of hospitality for Protect-A-Bed, noted that the attendees consisted of "decision makers" with the hotel properties themselves and with distributors. "There is a cautiously positive mood among the attendees," DiVito said. "They're telling me they see an upward mobility in their revenues."

This week marks the first hospitality show in which Hollander Home Fashions is an exhibitor, and Beth Mack, the company's chief merchandising officer, said she was "pleasantly surprised by the business here." Mack said Hollander's polyester-cotton pillows drew attention from hotel chains and distributors, while executives with higher-end hotels gravitated toward the company's offerings with natural fills.

"Tourism is picking up overall," Mack said. "The industry delayed purchases for a while when the economy was in the recession. Now that hospitality is in an uptick, they're ready to buy again."